IC packages often incorporate IC chips mounted to lead frames. Lead frames are often formed from a metal sheet, such as, for example, copper or a copper alloy, by forming various patterns on a top surface thereof by, for example, a stamping and/or punching process or by an etching process. The IC chips are often mounted in a center region of the lead frame and electrically coupled to the lead frame via wire bonds from the IC chip to bonding areas disposed around the IC chip. Oftentimes, the bonding pads are disposed on bonding fingers extending radially outwardly.
In general, the bonding areas may be plated to facilitate bonding between the wire bonds and the bonding areas. In the past, an etching process created the bonding areas on the lead fingers and a plating process plated the entire bonding area with a metal, such as, for example, silver or a silver alloy. Plating the entire surface area of the relative large, flat tabs created a plurality of problems, including, among other things, non-uniform distances between adjacent wire bonds around the leadframe.